Instruction and Love

[th1b.taylor]

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During my time on the Web I have tried to be careful to teach and when one seeks to instruct it is required that they both study and be honest. I am presently seeking to interest others, young and old, male and female, in the Book of the Revelation. In this post Revelation s mentioned only because I have been, lovingly, rebuked. It is the opinion of many that are younger than I that the name of God can be spelled god and present no disrespect to our only Holy God and because of Life Experience, I completely disagree.

When I was raised up we were (young folks) taught propriety. My generation, not myself, did not place emphasis on this matter and itś involvement with respect. Now, that generation, our children, has raised up their children (definitely not my daughter) to, as a whole, be disrespectful without even realizing they are. In the rebuke, the Moderator, pointed out to me that the person i sought to instruct with a gentle rebuke that in his opinion no disrespect was intended and none occurred.

The very first thing to consider is Mal. 3:6, God is the never changing God of all Creation! In Psa. 111:5 we see that we must fear God, a theme found throughout the entire Bible, to include the Life Application Commentary included with all Christian versions, known as The New Testament. So, at this point let´s look at fear in respect to our LORD. When I was a lad My dad loved me and demanded my respect (fear). I gave to him the respect (fear of disappointing) to him without ceasing, right up to and including the day he passed from this world into Eternity. When he was old I could have beaten the thunder out of him but I always humbled myself in his presence, just as I do for God.


In Proverbs 7a we learn that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. For understanding this point there are many roads open to examination. The best one available is a complete reading of the Bible but because folks find that laborious let´s consider the Kings of Europe and Asia from the past. It was a smart peasant that went out of their way to not anger the King because the king had the power of life or death over them. Today God, not only has this power but even more importantly, He has the power of life or death in Eternity.

To avoid belaboring the point you can have the remaining scriptures for this point, James 4, Isaiah 6 & Revelation 14. The point is that the fear of God is respect and respect is the awarding of special attention, special care and genuine love. Another poster sought to inform me that encouragement was more influential than a timely and correcting rebuke. To that point all I can say is, Satan is offering us all the encouragement he an deliver.​

 

[Davies]

th1b.taylor,

"Another poster sought to inform me that encouragement was more influential than a timely and correcting rebuke." - th1b.tylor

I was thinking about this point. I would pose the question, how do we know encourgement or a timely and correcting rebuke would be more influential? Was John the Baptist less influential? Was Jesus less influential when he rebuked the pharisees? Is being infulential the goal? I wonder if God, in His providence, is less influential by allowing us to suffer some of the consequences of our sins, leaving many people to wonder, 'Where is God?' or 'Why is this happening to me?'
Galatians 6:1

King James Version (KJV)


<sup id="en-KJV-29190" class="versenum">1</sup>Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

I suppose the question is not if we should rebuke people or correct them, but how do we do this in the spirit of meekness.

Keep loving people th1b.taylor, and if people can't see your motivation as love, then remember our love covers a multitude of sins.
1 Peter 4:8

King James Version (KJV)


<sup id="en-KJV-30455" class="versenum">8</sup>And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.


- Davies

 

[for_his_glory]

Gods influence in my life through his word is my encouragement to be the best me I can be as to always be pleasing to him and loving to others. If I need a timely or gentile rebuke let if be from the Father who's Holy Spirit convicts me when I step out of his will of love. When I was a child growing up there was no encouragement, but that of unnecessary rebuke that made a huge influence in my early years that caused my heart to hate and disrespect my dad until the day he died (and I can only hope he will be with the Father in eternity). I never knew what love was until Gods love for me, which is very unconditional, became my instruction how to love others I had no respect for. It's Gods' encouragement through his love that is now my influence as I can be that influence of Gods love to others that might need a timely and gentile rebuke as to encourage them to also be pleasing to the Father no matter how others try to influence them.

 

[Davies]

for_his_glory,

I think we have a lot to agree about.

"It's Gods' encouragement through his love that is now my influence as I can be that influence of Gods love to others that might need a timely and gentile rebuke as to encourage them to also be pleasing to the Father no matter how others try to influence them."

2 Tim. 3:16 is explicit regarding how the Scriptures are beneficial to us. Given that, the better we can apply the Scriptures, the better we can point the way to Christ or love others as Christ loved us. Ultimately, God uses people to do this work, correcting and encouraging. Certainly we need to encourage one another, but all encouragement without being corrected or all rebuke without encouragement, I think, is very hurtful.

I'll try and be as clear as I can with this next point which might be a theological difference between me and you, but suffice it to say I'm not trying to discourage you.

"Gods influence in my life through his word is my encouragement to be the best me I can be as to always be pleasing to him and loving to others."

To say, "as to always be pleasing to him," I think should be qualified with in Christ. I'm always pleasing to God because of the atoning blood of Jesus. For me to say I'm always pleasing to God would make me a liar, because like Paul, I have not reached my goal. One of the many reasons why I know I'm a sinner is because of my inconsistency in doing what is right, and because even Paul at the end of his life labeled himself as the "chief of sinners." The view of himself was worse at the end of his life then it was at the beginning of his conversion. Paul said he boasted in his weaknesses because it was in his weakness that God's power was made perfect. So, we shouldn't shy away from the faults we find in ourselves, which I venture are too many to want to admit to (this is called pride), but at the same time, we look unto Jesus who is our righteousness, who is always pleasing to the Father.

- Davies

 

[Jethro Bodine]

It is the opinion of many that are younger than I that the name of God can be spelled god and present no disrespect to our only Holy God and because of Life Experience, I completely disagree.

When I was raised up we were (young folks) taught propriety. My generation, not myself, did not place emphasis on this matter and itś involvement with respect.

I'm of the opinion, based on scripture, that the respect and reverence for God that matters to God has more to do with our personal conduct in regard to sin than if we capitalize the first letter of his title.

"...let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God." (2 Cor. 7:1 NIV1984)

What Paul is saying is, we show our reverence for God by being holy, separating ourselves from evil and keeping ourselves pure. That is the reverence for God that counts.

In Proverbs 7a we learn that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.

In the very next chapter we see more of an explanation of what that means:

"To fear the Lord is to hate evil..." (Proverbs 8:13 NIV1984 italics mine)

The beginning of wisdom...is to hate evil. That's where wisdom starts. And as we will see, culminates in the obedience to love others.


So, while it is true that the fear of God's punishment is the beginning of wisdom, love for God without fear of punishment is the culmination:

"17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:17-18 NIV1984)

Ultimately, love for God expressed in love for others is the reverence for God that he seeks from his people and which counts and gives us confidence in regard to God's judgment. He can see right through empty platitudes.

“‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
7 They worship me in vain; their teachings (through which they honor me) are but rules taught by men.’" (Mark 6:6-7 NIV1984 parenthesis mine)

It's what's in the heart and which reaches out to others in love that counts as true reverence for God, not our ideas about what properly reverences God.

Another poster sought to inform me that encouragement was more influential than a timely and correcting rebuke.

There is a time and a place for both. And wisdom and discernment gleaned through experience help us know which one to use in any one given situation.

My own experience is that shaming and condescending remarks, passed off as (loving?) spiritual rebuke are far less effective in bringing someone to the truth than calm, loving, polite instruction seasoned with the grace of God.